Building wings on the way down: Ellie Smart
Having a chat with the american professional cliff diver Ellie Smart about her career and her heart-stopping photos.Ā
1. What makes you get out of bed in the morning?
What makes me get out of bed in the morning is knowing that I have been given another 24 hours to live life to the fullest. Everyday is a new chance to better myself, learn new things, and chase my dreams and iāve learned not to take that for granted!
2. What first attracted you to diving?
When I was five I went to the pool and saw the diving boards and pretty much fell in love at first sight! I think it was just the thrill of it that I loved from such a young age!
3. What was the best piece of advice you were given when you started?
The best piece of advice I was given was to take it slow. Diving is such a hard sport and itās important to get the fundamentals down before moving on. It can be really frustrating but taking it slow pays off in the long run. I still struggle with taking that advice though! Haha.
4. Can you explain what your achievements have been since then?
Growing up I competed in Junior and Senior Nationals for springboard and platform diving. Then I went on to compete collegiately at The University of California, Berkeley, where I qualified for NCAAās on platform and won a National Championship with my team. Now I am in the middle of my first season as a high diver and have competed in two Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series stops and won the 1st Agios Nikolas Cliff Diving Competition hosted by the World High Diving Federation! However, Iād have to say my biggest achievement is finding the courage to learn a high diving list in the first place! Everything else is just a bonus.
5. What kind of physical training do you follow?
During the competition season I train 6 days week around 3-5 hours a day at the pool and then 2-3 days a week I go to the Adrenalin Quarry for high diving training (when Iām not traveling). In the off season, itās similar but I focus a lot more of weight lifting and strength training to make sure my body is strong enough to endure the whole season.
6. Whatās the main difference between olympic diving and cliff jumping?
The two main differences between Olympic diving and cliff diving is the height and how we enter the water. Platform diving is from 10 meters and you land on your head, whereas in cliff diving itās from anywhere in between 20-23 meters (for women, and 27-28 meters for men) and we land on our feet. Plus, with cliff diving we donāt do it in traditional pools, we do it at natural spots around the world which is really cool!
7. Have you ever been injured practicing this activity?
The impact from cliff diving is pretty hard and it can take a big toll on your body if youāre not careful. Ā Iāve been dealing with a shoulder and rib injury the past month from all of the impacts Iāve been doing. Ā
8. Have you ever stepped back seconds before jumping?
When I first started cliff jumping I stepped back a lot. In fact, there were days I stepped back and didnāt go at all. Itās a crazy feeling standing on a rock 70+ feet in the air and getting yourself to jump off. Itās so important to make sure you have your head in a good place before you go and if you donāt itās helpful to step back. At the end of the day cliff diving can be a dangerous sport so you really have to listen to your mind and body.
9. Which is your favorite spot to cliff dive and why?
My favorite spot to cliff dive at is Emerald Pools in Northern California. Itās were I did my very first high dive so it holds a special place in my heart!
10. Whatās the highest dive youāve ever done? And jump?
My highest dive so far was from 25 meters and my highest jump was from around 27 meters. Ā
11. How is the feeling of joining a Red Bull Cliff Diving event for the first time?
Competing in my first Red Bull Cliff Diving event was such a surreal feeling! It was something I worked really hard for, but at the same time I was like āwait am I really here competing against the best in the world?!ā It was an absolute dream come true, something I will never forget!
12. When and where is the next event in which you participate?
I am currently in the Czech Republic from a competition called High Jump this weekend! Then I head to a competition in Poland!
13. What role does Shutta play in all this?
Shutta is the best! I donāt have to worry about if I want to take a picture or a video, I can just take a video and get a still shot in the App. I found that when you try to screen shot a video or use some of the other apps it kills the quality and your photos become blurry but Shutta keeps the quality great!
14. What would you recommend Shutta App for?
I would recommend Shutta App to everyone! We all have those moments we want to remember and Shutta allows you to have the best of both worlds because you can take videos and then use the app to get top quality photos as well!
15. How do you see the future for you?
Oh gosh, a year ago I never would have seen high diving in my future so right now Iām just trying to soak it all in and enjoy every moment! Itās really such a blessing to be diving again and Iām just going to see where it takes me from here! However, I will say after getting a taste of the sport this year I definitely see a lot of it in my future! Who knows maybe it will be added to the 2024 Olympic games!
16. In what social networks can we follow you?
Twitter: @eleanor_t_smart
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellietsmart/
Go follow Ellie Smart on Shutta! And don't forget to submit your craziest pics to the Extreme Outdoors #ShuttaMission to win a Polaroid xs100i!
